Possession
by Lascylla
Summary: Sakura is forced out of Konoha due to her own unexpected actions and, on the run from all those who love her, she seeks shelter within the village of Sound. Confused and alone, she slowly learns that Otogakure is not so different from her own beloved home. And it's leader, well, it's leader is everything she expected him to be. And maybe a little more.
1. Chapter 1: Taken I

DISCLAIMER- I don't own Naruto. ****

**POSSESSION: Chapter One**

_The beat of drums reverberates through the heavy air. There are dark clouds gathered in the sky, a veil through which filters the grayest, dullest light. Sakura trembles with the knowledge that death is coming. Perhaps for her, perhaps for him._

_Regardless, it is coming._

_Silky black hair sways into her line of sight, white skin, golden eyes. He glides away behind her, an arm snaking out to settle heavily around her waist, pressure, heat, then gone. Just a reminder._

_Death is coming._

* * *

**PROLOGUE**

Sakura swallows heavily, kunai clenched in one sweaty fist, legs shaking with the effort of holding her slight frame upright. Well. Relatively upright. Her other hand is clasped to her side, trying to hold flesh together where it has been deeply parted. Blood seeps between her fingers, hot. Her chest heaves and she blinks droplets of sweat from her eyelashes.

The bastards surrounding her are the only ones left of a band of eight. She ripped holes in the rest and they are scattered throughout the forest, bleeding out or already dead. But these three... they are relatively unharmed and she is verging on passing out from blood loss and exhaustion. She thinks she has sustained several internal injuries on top of her obvious external ones, and her head rings and spins, but there is no time for a self-diagnostic, and certainly no chakra left for her to spare for healing.

They are wary still, prowling around her in an ever-tightening circle, growing more sure of themselves with every shaky breath she heaves through dry, cracked lips. She is out of time, out of weapons, out of ideas. She strains to stay conscious as the world tips and blurs before her, but no force of will can keep her broken body from falling now. They see her collapse and swoop in with cries of victory, kunai glinting viciously in their hands.

And all they had to do to beat me was wait me out...damn. 

* * *

A/N: New story, still working on Ghost. This one will be short pieces of varying lengths, but still one cohesive whole.


	2. Chapter 2: Taken II

**POSSESSION: Chapter Two**

Consciousness returns all at once, a force slamming through her body; awareness, sentience. Her eyelids spring open and she blinks rapidly against the harsh light. Tries to move her hands to cover her eyes - even closed there is a horrible, brilliant redness that pushes against them, burning, pressure - but they will not move. She is tied down, immobilized. Why? How?

It's not just her hands, but her legs, her torso. She can feel the iron bands holding her down, tight and heavy, now that she knows they are there. She must open her eyes, must see, understand. Fight her way free.

Though the harsh, artificial light burns her retinas, the kunoichi forces her eyelids to stay open. Pained tears well and she blinks them away, desperate to know- _where is she?_

The fight, she remembers that, soaring through the treetops, ramming her fists through skin and flesh and bone. And then that lucky blow, the kunai buried in her side, the rapid blood loss, the way they wore her down, darting in and out, weaving and chipping away at her until she had nothing left. _Bastards._

"Ah, you're awake. Time to see just how recovered you are."

Grey hair and glasses, glinting in the cold clinical light.

"Kabuto," she spits, eyes narrowed, teeth bared in an almost-snarl.

"Well, at least your memory appears to be intact," the medical ninja twitches an insincere smile her way as he begins to run glowing green hands over her body in an advanced diagnostic jutsu.

She grits her teeth and struggles to rise, forgetting that she is immobilized. Her wrists feel heavy, dragged down, dangling from the edges of the- whatever it is she is strapped to (her mind shies away from the words _operating table,_ though they resonate with her as being accurate).

"Ah-ah-ah, don't struggle, Sakura, you'll only reopen your wounds. You don't want to invalidate all my hard work, do you? After all, I did save your life."

Sakura swallows hard against the pain that is slowly making itself known to her battered nerve endings and subsides. Kabuto pauses in his movements to smile condescendingly at her. "That's a girl."

She inhales sharply against the urge to scream as he pokes at her injured side with tendrils of chakra. He is not gentle with his probing, but he is thorough, methodical.

"Hmm. I think that'll do for now," Kabuto straightens up, adjusting his glasses with one finger and disappears from her view. She hears a door slide open, closed, and then there is only darkness.


	3. Chapter 3: Taken III

**POSSESSION: Chapter Three**

The next time Sakura awakes, it is to the sting of a needle being slid out from beneath the tender skin on the inside of her elbow. She is slumped on the floor, one arm pulled upright, chained at the wrist to a wall. The other arm is lifted and a cuff snapped efficiently around that wrist too. She blinks dazedly, head drooping, chin bumping her chest, and stares at the floor. And at the black-sandaled feet at the very edge of her vision. Slowly, her gaze travels upwards, eyes rolling in their sockets - she lacks the strength to lift her head.

It is Kabuto again, eyes hidden behind glinting glasses. His vague smirk seems triumphant. Fear worms its way through her heart and up into her throat, lodging there and constricting the flow of air to her lungs.

"Hello again, Sakura," he says simply, as though he's pleased to see her in the most perfunctory and vague of ways.

She cannot convince her lips to part, let alone her voice to emerge, so she simply drops her gaze, eyes closing, sore from the extreme angle.

A faint sigh comes from some dark corner of the room, and a raspy, lilting voice follows behind it, "Another failure, Kabuto. This_ is_ becoming tedious."

Soft rustling, near-silent footsteps. Sakura opens her eyes, worried at this new arrival. She senses that the medical ninja's whole body has tensed, though she only sees his feet and shins.

"I do not believe this one to be a failure, my lord. I think-"

The feet are yanked from Sakura's view, accompanied by a choked off gasp.

"Perhaps, in future, you should wait to show me your 'great triumph' until you _know_, Kabuto!" The voice is harsh, the words hissed and spat with great venom, and an aura of heavy, undulating power rolls through the room, oppressive and choking.

There is a thud, the crack of breaking glass, and then silence. The heavy feeling in the air recedes, and Sakura slowly becomes aware of quick, sharp breaths that are not her own. She slowly raises her head, a little strength returning to her via the flood of adrenaline that her body released in response to the dark chakra in the air.

Kabuto is half lying on the floor, holding his torso upright on trembling arms, elbows locked straight. His glasses lie in pieces before him and he stares into the middle distance, unseeing. His jaw works, teeth grinding, eyes sheened with a layer of moisture.

Sakura lowers her head again and closes her eyes. He hurts a little to look at and she is too tired to care what any of this means for her. Her knees are beginning to ache from bearing her weight against the cold, hard floor, and her shoulders hurt, her arms pulled taut by the cuffs. The only way to relieve any of that is to stand, and she cannot.

_Unconsciousness it is, then..._


	4. Chapter 4: Taken IV

**POSSESSION: Chapter Four**

There are voices outside, rising and falling and rising again. She cannot make out the words, nor even the tone, but they are there.

The door slides open, the lights come on, and her eyes burn from the unexpected light. Through the film of moisture that forms on their surface, she can make out the white and black form of someone she remembers all too well, and yet not well enough at all.

He stalks toward her, expression severe, as though he is certain she is wasting his time. Sakura feels that she cannot be blamed for any of this, though, so she boldly meets his eyes. She has long since given up hope of anything - rescue, release, even death. There is nothing left to fear.

Even so, it is natural instinct to cower in the face and proximity of a great predator, and she cannot help but think that that is just what he is. No longer human, he has become something other, something higher on the food chain and completely unafraid to take his pound of flesh from those beneath him.

That black aura is tightly controlled, though she can still feel the power of rising off his body and pressing into her skin, though he stands well a foot apart from her. It suffocates and muffles, works its way into her mouth and nostrils, down into her lungs and belly, drowning her in chakra-charged air. Her eyes water and her body trembles, but she does not drop her gaze. To show cowardice now would be fatal, she is sure. Just as fatal as would showing arrogance be. She must show him fear, but never give in to it.

His face is blank, impassive, and she cannot help but wonder at the difference in him from her last encounter with him during the chuunin exams. He was gloating, sadistic, gleeful in his power, full of hateful humor and bubbling joy.

He is none of those things now, and she cannot help but feel that _this_ Orochimaru is the one to truly fear.

"Brave, little one," he murmurs, ever so softly. He flicks his inky-black hair away from his pale face with an elegant movement and speaks to Kabuto over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off hers. "Very well, Kabuto. Perhaps you will not be adding this one to your long list of failures."

And then all the air in her lungs seems to disappears and there is nothing.


	5. Chapter 5: Home I

**POSSESSION: Chapter Five**

Something tickles my cheek, and I reach up to scratch it. It remains and I slowly become aware of an ache in my side, then of warmth on my skin. My eyes open, fluttering against the sunlight and I slowly sit up. There is grass beneath me, soft and scratchy and green. I can hear morning birds calling, and smell fresh, clean air. I suck in a deep breath, savouring it, and slowly stand. There is a peculiar hurt just under my ribcage, but then I notice the rock I must have been lying on.

What on earth am I doing out here? And then I remember- the rogue-nins I'd been hunting. Soaring through the trees, taking them out one by one. I spy their headbands lying in a pile nearby, the slashes through their countries' insignias.

"Huh. Must have overdone it, I guess," I mutter quietly to myself. Something doesn't quite feel right, but my brain skitters away from that thought and I'm quite happy to let it. Best to just gather up the headbands and head home to collect my pay. 

* * *

"Sakura!" There is a yellow-haired annoyance racing towards me as I pass through the gates into Konoha. My face splits into a relieved grin, despite my irritation at his over-exuberance.

"Naruto, calm dow- oof," the air is forced from my lungs as he crushes me in his embrace. "I wasn't gone that long," I wheeze, and something in my voice must have alerted him to my predicament, as he releases me, holding me at arms length. Blue eyes examine me quickly, as though searching for signs of injury, before clearing at their lack.

"You took way too long to complete such an easy mission, Sakura," he lectures, though I can see the worry sliding away from him.

I shrug a little uneasily. "I may have overdone it a bit, so I took a rest before coming back."

He frowns and shakes his head, "You need to be careful when you're out on your own, Sakura. Even though we haven't heard anything from Orochimaru in a while, that doesn't mean you can be reckless."

I snort roughly and whack the blond idiot on the arm, "Like you can talk, mister 'I'm gonna go off on my own and nearly die every two minutes'."

Naruto rubs the back of his head sheepishly, but I can see he's still worried. In truth, Naruto's grown up a lot, and while he's still way too eager to put himself in harm's way, maturity has instilled some sense of self-preservation in him.

"Just be careful," he says quietly, eyes serious. A little wave of guilt rises in my chest- I'm the only family Naruto really has, now, even though we're not related. Ever since Sasuke's disappearance and assumed death, the blond ninja has been over-protective, and oftentimes, overbearing in his need to make sure I'm okay.

The need to reassure him is familiar, and the words come easily, even though I know I can't promise such things. "I will be, Naruto. I always am."

We're ninja. There are no guarantees, and we all have the specter of death looming over us, just waiting for that slip, that one mistake.

It is inevitable. Ninja don't die of old age. 

**A/N:** Thanks for the reviews/encouragement guys!


	6. Chapter 6: Home II

**POSSESSION: Chapter 6**

I don't go on a great many missions outside the village- most of my time is spent in the hospital, either patching up the injured or in research and development, trying to come up with newer, better ways of preserving our limited forces. One of the new systems put in place is a mandatory check on all ninja returning from A rank or higher missions. It's saved a few lives so far, mostly due to the fact that ninja don't willingly allow themselves to be poked and prodded by medics, so some serious injuries used to go untreated.

Medics are trusted to know their own bodies well enough, so they need not be examined one their return. The hospital staff are stretched thin enough as it is.

It's been three weeks since my last mission, the one where I woke up in a clearing after haviong overextended myself. There's something in me that says I should be at least a little worried, that I should perhaps ask Tsunade to run some tests, make sure I'm really okay. But I can't bring myself to. It hasn't happened again, even though I've pushed myself harder than ever, completing ten-hour long operations back to back when one of the ANBU teams came back more dead than alive. I take this to mean that there is nothing wrong with me.

While I've been pushing myself in my treatment of patients, my mind seems to wander insistently back to the projects I've been involved with in research and development. Some of the other nations have reportedly made new advances in manipulation of the mind and of memories. I'm rather skeptical to be perfectly honest- it sounds to me like false bravado. That, or lies. Sometimes gaining the upper hand is as simple as sending your opponent on a wild goose chase while doing nothing yourself.

The grey concrete and guady streamers clash, shop-fronts wide open and beconing with multicoloured arms. The paper bag in my arms seems to weigh nothing, though it is full to the brim with groceries. I'm tired. It's no surprise- this is my first day off in two weeks due to the outbreak of a newly discovered virus.

I can't wait to fall into bed, though I only just left it an hour ago. I feel as though I'm carrying a heavy burden, though my real physical burden is as light as a feather.

"Sakura, you look like you haven't slept at all! Is there... someone I should know about?" Tsunade grins wickedly, leering at me with eyes full of amusement.

I huff and laugh a little, "And when would I have time to find someone you should know about, shishou?"

The blonde hokage shrugs and the happiness falls from her face, though it lingers in the corners of her eyes. She seems to be under a lot of pressure lately. "Someday, Sakura, it won't matter how little time you have." Her eyes are full of something- nostalgia, maybe?

I smile for her, just because I know she needs someone to smile for her sometimes.

The parting of flesh beneath my chakra scalpel brings a bubbling joy rising in my chest. This is what I live for- the intricate repair of a system so complex that it cannot truly be fathomed. Seal this vessel, splice this thread of chakra into this one, rearrange the positioning of this muscle ever so slightly. Small cuts, make room for this here.

Not only will this one be fixed, it will be better.


	7. Chapter 7: Home III

**POSSESSION: Chapter Seven**

"So... people are controlling each other's minds?" Naruto squints sceptically at his pink-haired friend, noodles halfway to his mouth.

Sakura sighs and plants her forehead in her hands. She has been explaining to Naruto the research and new techniques that have reportedly been developed by one of the hidden villages - rumor has it Kusagakure - but all he seems to have taken from it is 'mind control'.

"No, not exactly. There's this new technique, though I haven't been able to find anyone who's actually witnessed it in action, that allows the transfer of a small amount of minute chakra particles from one individual to another. These particles contain and transfer the will of their originator to the target. Originally it was supposed to just be used as a way to boost a flagging ninja's strength during battle, but they discovered that the recipients were displaying some unusual behaviour afterwards. It turns out, depending on the strength of the donor, that the chakra particles were actually overwriting small sections of the recipients… will, for lack of a better way to explain it. It doesn't alter memories and it doesn't control minds, it just… suggests. Influences. It's more subtle than straightforward mind control," Sakura shrugs a little helplessly. There is no better way to explain the phenomenon as yet, because no one truly understands it.

Naruto frowns, "So basically… mind control?"

Sakura can see from the evil little glint in his eye that the orange-clad ninja is being deliberately obtuse. "Yes, Naruto. Mind control," she confirms with an exasperated laugh. She's bored him for long enough with her explanation. She's not even entirely certain why she's so fascinated by these rumours, especially considering that there may not be even a grain of fact within them.

"Right, so we're agreed then- freaky mind control! Now, on to more important things," he wiggles his eyebrows and grins playfully. "There's a bonfire at Kiba's tomorrow night- you going?"

Her fingers twitch and she curls them into a fist atop her bent knee, trying to suppress her nervous energy. A bottle of sake dangles from the fingers of her other hand, half drunk. Everyone else has downed several bottles by now and they're laughing and stumbling and joking around the blazing fire. Sakura prefers to sit peacefully off to the side, staring mindlessly into the flames. They burn her eyes a little, too bright to look at, and her face is hot. She is wandering within her head, a little aimless but generally focused on recalling the details of her last surgery. Had she allowed enough to account for the extra energy that would be produced? Or would that one be returning to her with one less limb, torn off by an overload of power? Her calculations had seemed to indicate not, but it can be hard to predict the eccentricities of the human body.

"Forehead! Forehead, come and dance with us," Ino is calling, and so Sakura goes, rolling her eyes at her friend. The platinum blonde has cajoled Hinata into dancing, though the girl is blushing and darting nervous glances towards Naruto every few seconds.


	8. Chapter 8: Home IV

**POSSESSION: Chapter Eight**

The day they figure it out, she is wrist-deep in the chest of a man, rewiring his heart for some purpose known only to her deranged mind. She is deft and sure, every movement considered, a little adjustment here, catch the bleeding there. She is utterly focused, does not notice the ANBU surrounding her until it's far too late. They wait for her finish her work, on Tsunade's orders.

The blonde hokage stands by, tears shimmering in her honey eyes, trembling with confusion, disgust, betrayal. There is something wrong with her beloved protege. The girl who has been like a daughter, like a friend. Using all the knowledge shared between them to do… this.

The sound of her shihou's hitching breath breaks Sakura's concentration, and she turns, worry in her eyes. "Tsunade-shishou? What's wrong?" Her hands withdraw and she glances down, startled, shocked. Dawning horror on her pretty face. Tsunade strangles an agonized sob and gestures to the ANBU.

Take her she mouths soundlessly. Words are far beyond her now.

Sakura awakes with a jolt, the hot blood on her hands, the man before her, dying. Tsunade staring wordlessly, the ANBU lunging for her.

"No!" She rears back, horrified, slams her fist into one mask, shattering porcelain and bone alike. Another cracks under the force of her heel. Something has latched onto her arm and she rips it away, bones breaking in her grasp - a hand, an arm, a man- she throws them aside. Tsunade is there, she knows, crying but resolute. Sakura doesn't understand, can't force her mind to accept this nightmare she has awoken to. It's not real, can't be, never. I wouldn't, I don't…

"Sorry, Shishou," she cries, ramming her shoulder into the wall. It splinters, cracks, breaks, dissolves and she is gone, tearing through the streets. Faces she knows whip by, but she is unseeing, unhearing. She has to get away, has to find somewhere safe, somewhere to think, to reason her way through this.

The blood is drying, sticky, on her hands. Safety, safety... nowhere will be safe for her now.


End file.
